Bad packing, misdeclared cargoes harm container carriers

Thursday, December 27, 2012

An analysis of cargo and container "incidents," such as leakages, explosions, fires, and stuctural failures of flexitanks or valves, finds more than two-thirds involved dangerous goods, half including leakages and 21 percent misdeclared, said the insurer TT Club.
The company recently undertook an analysis of data collected through the Cargo Incident Notification System (CINS) of the Container Owners’ Association, a group whose members account for 52 percent of container-slot capacity.
TT Club said only 8 percent of the incidents by number involved fires or explosions, but clearly the consequences were far more serious. The analysis also found half resulted from packing issues.
"This is especially telling when the database reveals that more than a third of the incidents with packing issues involve corrosive cargoes, which by their nature will react with other substances," TT Club said. "In fact, when it comes to packing issues, 80 percent of the records involve dangerous goods."
The insurance company said "A further key finding – and chilling for all liner carriers – is that it was found that 21 percent of the cases involved mis-declaration of the cargo, mostly dangerous goods. This is probably the first time that this ‘iceberg’ risk has been quantified. As investigators continue to sift for evidence on board MSC Flaminia, the fears of the liner industry that the nature of cargo carried is largely unknown are here shown to be reasonable." - Chris Dupin